Campaign tackles fraud targeting elderly people

China has carried out a campaign to tackle fraud against elderly people, and has established a comprehensive elderly care system to support the group, according to the Ministry of Civil Affairs.

"In recent years, some criminals targeted the senior population and committed fraud, causing economic losses and mental suffering to the elderly," Li Banghua, who is in charge of the ministry's nursing services department, said at a news conference on Thursday.

Since April, a national campaign to tackle fraud targeting the elderly has been carried out by 12 departments, including the Ministry of Civil Affairs, which is responsible for rectifying fraud-related problems and hidden dangers in the field of elderly services, Li said.

Civil affairs departments at all levels have carried out two rounds of inspection as of August, canvassing 270,000 institutions and sites and finding 950 sites with hidden hazards.

It found that 576 sites without registration engaged in elderly service businesses.

The next step is to cooperate with relevant departments to regulate the collection of prepayment by elderly institutions to protect seniors, he added.

By last year, those aged 65 years and above accounted for 14.2 percent of the more than 1.41 billion people on the Chinese mainland. The senior group, which is becoming bigger, needs more support.

In the past decade, the country has promoted the establishment of a comprehensive system to support seniors, releasing laws and regulations to promote senior nursing services.

It has also improved the basic elderly nursing service system, he added.

China has 14.2 million elderly people who collect the minimum living allowance. Financial subsidies have been provided to nearly 370 million elderly people in financial difficulties and with disabilities.

It has also promoted the building of a service system for elderly people who are living in rural areas with children working in urban areas.

More nursing facilities for the elderly were also built. China has 360,000 such facilities with 8.13 million beds, double the number in 2012.